Pros and Cons of Being a Multidisciplinary Designer in a Product House and Why It Is So Satisfying
Independent Project Managers? Individual Traffic Managers? We don’t need them anymore. Our multidisciplinary team of Designers and Developers does the job.
After a few years spent on gaining experience in creative agencies and corporations, I could fairly say, that the IT industry is growing by leaps and bounds. New software is developed, new technologies are used. Evolution in managing businesses is visible at a first glance. Managers don’t waste their time and money on recruiting people who’d preserve unnecessary jobs. Teams are skilled and extremely effective these days.
As a UX/UI Designer in a Product House I can say, the times of sharing responsibility among different positions in company are almost over. Some management duties were absorbed by other jobs. Responsibility for project and traffic management rest with designers now.
How does it affect our reality? Let’s take a closer look at pros and cons of multidisciplinary approach to designer’s job.
Advantages of being a Multidisciplinary Designer at Product House
Our company management methodology is based on the lean concept.
Lean management seeks to eliminate any waste of time, effort or money by identifying each step in a business process and then revising or cutting out steps that do not create value.
What does it mean for us, multidisciplinary designers? First of all, the responsibility for client’s projects lies with us. We solve the problems because we work closest to them. Taking care of the highest possible quality of products is extremely motivating.
Direct contact with a client makes the feedback process quicker and more effective. We don’t need to engage other team members in our tasks anymore. Given the information isn’t distorted or lost somewhere along the way, this makes a great improvement.
Moreover, straightforward communication with a client allows me to set my own pace of work. Thanks to appropriate work time estimations I have the ability not only to do the design jobs, but also to write this article or join some workshops and conferences.
Frugality is the substantial advantage of having multidisciplinary designers onboard from the company’s point of view. It’s economically and strategically wiser for a company to invest its resources in development of current employees by financing courses, workshops or conferences, than it is to spend time and money on random recruitments for one skill and one time needed jobs.
Spreading knowledge and skills on multiple levels (not limited to design and management, front-end or back-end basics sound great too!) may lead us to more demanding positions, like product owner or startup founder, in the future. Let’s take Vu Hoang Anh as an example — from a designer to the CEO of Avocode. Check out his interview on multidisciplinary approach and building a successful startup at Design Encounters last year.
Disadvantages of Responsibility Absorption
Where’s the catch? Well, project and traffic management takes time and requires attention, which we could spend on designing or developing design-related skills. However we have to realise that coordination is crucial part of every product design process, and all we can do is get used to it.
When working on a new product with a demanding client, communication is not a piece of cake. You are on the front line, so you are the one who needs to understand client’s ideas, even those vague and imprecise. As a reliable professional, you have to guide your customer towards the best solution. Customers want to feel secure. When a designer is also managing a project, it’s his or her job to make the clients feel they are in the right hands. It requires the designer’s attention to detail not only when it comes to artwork but also in terms of communication — understanding customers’ needs in particular.
Conclusion
I would probably be lying if I told you that life in a Product House is easy. Argue defiant clients and all can be enervating. But only until the SATISFACTION of seeing your project live kicks in, hearing your colleagues and clients saying: ‘Hey, this is a really huge piece of good work! Congratulations’, it’s immeasurable. In the end, having an impact on whole design thinking process and sharing your knowledge just compensate it all.
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About the Author
Mateusz is UX/UI Designer at EL Passion. You can find him on Dribbble.
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